IAA World Premiere: The NEOPLAN Jetliner Inaugurates a Whole New Era in the Premium Segment

IAA World Premiere: The NEOPLAN Jetliner Inaugurates a Whole New Era in the Premium Segment

The jet among combination buses: The versatile combination talent among premium buses for everyday use

The perfect entry model to the premium segment coming with an extensive range of standard features and shining with Sharp Cut Design

NEOPLAN Jetliner with a length of 12 metres, Jetliner C with a length of 13 metres

High-end estate cars are the success story in the realm of passenger vehi-cles, acquiring new market shares every year: They make a distinguished impression at business appointments, cover any long distances in style and confidence, make you look good on your night out at the opera, and haul the whole family including baby and pram out to the country on the weekends. NEOPLAN's new Jetliner now brings this successful vehicle concept to the world of buses: this elegant bus is an efficient and versatile transportation tool for workdays, evenings, and weekends alike – while always impressing with the stylish ambiance of a premium tour bus.

With the Jetliner, NEOPLAN are now expanding their versatile range of models by an entry-level model to the premium segment of tour buses. The Jetliner is a genuine NEOPLAN! As a combination bus, it is the perfect solu-tion for a wide range of uses - from tour bus all the way to regular-service bus. What must a bus offer to meet all these requirements? The deep-seated and spacious comfort of a genuine tour bus, with large storage volume, ex-cellent driving properties, and high-end materials options for the interior. Its floor height of 1,070 millimetres is the basis of its use as "double earner". It allows maximum flexibility for the choice of seating, offers up to 8 m³ of stor-age volume, and has the perfect access height for use in regular-service operation. The high standards set for the vehicle's interior design are met by a large selection of high-quality fabrics for the seats and coverings. A compre-hensive standard safety package guarantees outstanding driving safety round the clock.

The Jetliner brand looks proudly back at its nearly 40 years of tradition with NEOPLAN. The newly presented generation embodies the idea of a compact-sized combination bus featuring the Sharp Cut Design popular from the other NEOPLAN top models. All these features are embodied by the new Jetliner with its compact outer dimensions, its vehicle height of 3.4 metres, and its turning radius of 21 metres for the 12-metre model. Old historical town centres with narrow winding roads and low gateway passages are barely an obstacle to the Jetliner. It is this extraordinary combination of features which gives the Jetliner its special status while offering the customer an outstanding degree of flexibility for the vehicle's use both in the travel and regular-service segments.

The design features of the new Jetliner

NEOPLAN'S authentic design language is evident every which way you look at the vehicle's exterior, and it is this signature design language which gives the Jetliner its distinct character: Design examples include the headlights with daytime running lights which give the bus the confident look of an eagle, the taillights with their characteristic triangular shape, and the tinted window panes which create a distinct contrast to the rest of the vehicle's body.

The signature NEOPLAN Sharp Cut Design has in the meantime become the common denominator of all NEOPLAN models ensuring a high level of recognition and hence the vehicle clear distinction as a premium bus. Clean lines and sharp-cut edges in glass and steel are the accompanying features reflecting the vehicle's uncompromising aerodynamics.

The dark-contoured window surfaces are also used by NEOPLAN as part of the Jetliner's design language. The black roof roundings make the roof look airy and lightweight - a design feature which perfectly underlines the overall' vehicle's buffy proportions. The dark surfaces as a whole are in sharp contrast to the vehicle's distinctive design elements like its forward-sloping B pillar and high-end chrome applications. The Jetliner's vehicle front is distinguished by a panorama windscreen drawn all the way up into the roof, thereby replicating NEOPLAN'S signature cockpit look.

The fairing features the brand's signature sharply outlined clear-glass head-lights. Their technical interior features bevelled circular luminaires focussing sharply on the road ahead. The Jetliner is standard-equipped with LED day-time running lights and cornering lights while bi-xenon lamps are optionally available for the full and dipped beams. Direction indicators and fog lights are installed separately in the front apron. Direction indicators and fog lights are installed separately in the front apron.

The forward-sloping B column integrated in the vehicle's design merges seamlessly with the conically tapered casing of the air conditioning system. This design feature gives the vehicle any dynamically progressive side view.

The design elements of the vehicle's tail end give the Jetliner nothing less than athletic proportions: Powerfully taut surfaces opening up towards the top combine to create a distinct V shape. The trapeze-shaped rear window with its chrome-plated trim panel along the bottom edge is another characteristic design element of the NEOPLAN family. The optionally available reserving camera is integrated in the chrome-plated trim panel. Other distinct signature design characteristics shared with the Starliner and the Cityliner include the shape of the taillights and the outline of the engine compartment flap repeating the outline of the rear window.

Design and comfort level of the vehicle's interior

The interior colour climate familiar from the Cityliner and Starliner has been developed further to demarcate the different functional areas by a switch between dark and light shades. The interior's colour climate with its warm hues provides a friendly and welcoming ambiance while the multitude of bright shades used make the interior feel large and spacious. The feeling of comfort and spaciousness is further enhanced by the large-sized window surfaces and the 2 metres of headroom in the centre aisle. Tastefully placed decorative applications bearing the NEOPLAN logo grace the vehicle's interior.

The NEOPLAN premium level is underlined in the Jetliner by the wide selec-tion of seat types available and the exquisite and versatile fabrics and materials available for the coverings: Even the Jetliner as entry-level model offers the entire range of colour and fabric varieties available from the NEOPLAN collection to customize the design of your dreams. The exquisite high-quality materials are processed in Plauen (Germany). The assembly site of the NEOPLAN Jetliner stands for more than 20 years of professional competence in the building of tour buses.

The Jetliner's standard supplied air conditioning system with its 33-kW output and large cross sections for ample air flows ensures reliable climatisation of the vehicle's interior. Passengers have the option of setting their climate of preference to suit their personal needs via the signature NEOPLAN roll nozzles designed to supply a draught-free supply of fresh air. White LEDs inte-grated in the air nozzle elements serve for lighting passenger seats. The colour climate for night lighting is blue. A 55-litre compressor refrigerator is also standard-supplied with the Jetliner. It is integrated in the dashbard and there-fore easy to access by the tour guide.

Ergonomics and storage space for the trip

The Jetliner comes in a total of four basic designs for optimized configuration of the bus depending on its purpose of use: A particularly agile 12-metre version offers up to 53 seats and 6.7 m³ of boot space, where as the 13-metre version known as Jetliner C offers up to 57 seats and 8 m³ of boot space. Both versions are fourwheelers weighing in at 18 tons of total admissible weight. Both lengths are available in combination with a single-wide or a double-wide door for the rear.

Rapid loading and unloading of passengers is important especially in regular-service operation. In the new Jetliner, the door is installed direct in front of the rear axle. This helps passengers to distribute more evenly over both doors while cutting down on the passengers' route from the rear to the door. This promotes a high level of passenger flow while avoiding congestion. Even the front door has profited from NEOPLAN's special attention and easy entrance and exit - a measure of comfort enhancing both daily service operation and long-distance travel. As an alternative to the standard-supplied tour guide seat we offer an optional comfort version placed further to the rear to create a wider aisle.

If intended for use primarily as comfortable tour bus suitable for long-travel distance, the Jetliner can also be equipped with a toilet and buffet. The seat variant featuring leather trimming with adjustable backrest ensures sophisti-cated seating comfort. To provide more seating space during travelling, the seats on the inside can be pulled out towards the centre aisle. An entertain-ment system with DVD player displays on well-visible 19-Inch monitors both at driver level and in the vehicle's centres. A drawbar or mounting brackets for a ski container serve to further upgrade the vehicle's range of applications e.g. for bicycle trailers or ski trips.

Even if intended for use primarily in daily regular-service operation, the vehi-cle can be custom-equipped to suit the customer's needs: For enhancing the safety of standing passengers, the Jetliner can be ordered equipped with handles and holding rods. Stop call buttons at the holding rods of the luggage compartment are supplied as a standard. Separating walls at the entrance and behind the driver's station guarantee enhanced safety. The selection of available seat models contains a design featuring a fixed backrest and hard-wearing covers for predominant use in regular-service operation. Destination displays on the inside and outside as well as a mounting fixture for a ticket dispenser or the wiring for connection of ticket validators are also available to completely equip the vehicle for regular-service operation. The on-board toilet is available for both length variants and both door variants. Equipped with a narrow rear door and an on-board toilet, the Jetliner offers a maximum number of seats for predominant use in short trips and excursions. Equipped with a wider rear door, the vehicle ensures rapid and smooth passenger flows plus the option of creating either a standing platform or four additional seats with the help of a replaceable platform. A wheelchair lift ensuring safe entrance and exit both during regular service operation and travel is available in combination with the wide double door. Whenever the lift is not in use, it is parked invisibly inside the bottom stair.

Superior drive train to suit any application

For optimized driving comfort, dynamic behaviour and efficiency it is possible to configure the Jetliner's drive train from two different performance-level 10.5-litre MAN common rail D20 Diesel engines, three different axle ratios, and three different gear versions. This ensures optimized torque profiles, low RPMs during long-distance travel, and ideal gear ratios in demanding terrains. The NEOPLAN consultants will be happy to assist you in configuring the most efficient and smooth-running drive train fine-tuned to your Jetliner's focus of use.

The time-tested and continually improved-on components of MAN Truck & Bus's equipment portfolio are a hallmark of guaranteed reliability. The long oil-change intervals of engines, gears, and rear axles translate into low maintenance costs and brief stops at the shop. The core piece of the superior drive train is the famously fuel-efficient horizontal 6-cylinder D20. NEOPLAN offers two performance levels, i.e. 264 kW (360 HP) with a torque of 1,800 Nm and 294 kW (400 HP) with a torque of 1,900 Nm. The Jetliner will be presented in 2012 with the famously efficient and time-tested Euro 5 and EEV technology. The engines achieve this exhaust-gas standard without the addition of AdBlue®. The technology for Euro 6 is already available, and the new Jetliner has been prepared for adaption in due time.

It is possible to order three different gear variants for the Jetliner: 6-speed stick shift, 6-speed EcoLife automatic converter transmission, and the auto-mated 12-speed transmission MAN TipMatic® Coach. Thanks to its low weight, the standard-supplied 6-speed transmission permits maximum pay-loads. The transmission is easy to operate thank to its compact joystick shift positioned right next to the driver's seat.

In cases where the Jetliner's intended focus of use is predominantly on frequent stop-and-go traffic, the 6-speed automatic transmission EcoLife with automatic converter will provide the most efficient solution. The topography-sensitive TopoDyn transmission control automatically activates the most efficient gear-shift program while the vehicle is in operation, basing its selection on the gradient of uphill and downhill stretches. On steep inclines, the "Power" mode makes maximum power available. The Eco mode on the other hand while shift earlier to the fuel-saving higher gears while travelling on even stretches. Lower gear-change speeds lead to lower levels of vehicle noise, which passengers experience as more pleasant. On downhill stretches, the software automatically makes optimum braking power available.

MAN TipMatic® Coach is based on an automated manual gearbox. Both clutch actuation and gear shifting are automated, with a gear shifting strategy optimized for comfortable and fuel-efficient operation in tour buses and com-bined with EasyStart (start-up function) and a sophisticated manoeuvering mode. Thanks to its economically optimized gear-shift strategy, the MAN TipMatic® Coach is a particularly fuel-saving gearbox. In addition, the gear-box makes it possible for experienced drivers to save even more fuel with an anticipatory driving style and manual shifting interventions. And it increases safety: in challenging situations such as e.g. during manoeuvering move-ments as it allows the driver to concentrate on nothing but the traffic.

For the Jetliner, NEOPLAN uses the lightweight MAN hypoid axle, popular for its smooth running and economic operation, for the rear axle. Depending on the intended focus of use, the customer has a choice of three different types of rear-axle transmissions. This makes it possible to custom-equip the vehicle for the individual requirements of predominant vehicle operation (i.e. regular-service operation or tour operation) with an optimized rear-axle transmission and hence a fuel-saving drive train with a low RPM level. Newly developed stabilisers at the front axle provide superior driving comfort. Long cruising ranges are ensured by the standard-supplied large-volume 300-litre Diesel tank which can upon request be supplemented by additional tanks will filling volumes of between 100 an 280 litres.

Premium ambience for daily use: The cockpit

The driver's workstation offers outstanding ergonomic conditions thanks to the cockpit elements known from the “large-sized” NEOPLAN models: The Jetliner provides the driver with easy-to-read, analogous, chrome-fitted circu-lar displays popular from NEOPLAN's top models. A colour display located between the main instruments contains an efficiency display advising the driver of trip data and important vehicle data. The rocker switches in the cockpit have been designed for night operation. The standard-supplied multi-function steering wheel permits operation of the cruise control, intarder, and radio without need of taking one's hands off the wheel. The cruise control is also included in the Jetliner's standard equipment. The cockpit offers the driver the familiar NEOPLAN Premium looks and surface feel – emotion in everyday use: The curved dashboard is designed in two-colours. The TopLine multimedia centre offers integrated navigation functions. The TopLine device simultaneously serves as a perfectly placed monitor for the images received from the reversing camera and the camera located above the second door (both available as extra equipment). A multimedia interface with connection ports for a media player (3.5-mm stereo jack) and iPod is also available. A heatable windscreen is also available, as is a powered roller blind. The climate for the driver's compartment can be set independently of the climate in the passenger compartment. It is possible to open and close both doors separately via a new and innovative radio remote control integrated in the ignition key. The luggage flaps are also locked via the central locking system.

Assistant systems provide for added safety

The new Jetliner offers an impressive package of standard-supplied driver assistant systems. The electronic assistant systems support the driver in his or her high-responsibility driving tasks for a marked reduction in accident risks. Safe braking is the province of the electronic braking system (EBS) with its anti-blocking system (ABS) and braking assistant (BA) as well as BrakeMatic®. In emergencies, the traction control system (TCS) and electronic stability program (ESP) with integrated roll-over prevention allow the targeted deceleration of individual wheels and automatic engine torque reduction to ensure that the Jetliner will remain safely in its lane and on the road even in critical driving situations. The Maximum Speed Control (MSC) speed limiter supports the driver in fuel-saving cruising on motorways. Reifen. Last but not least, the tyre-pressure monitoring system (TPM) reliably prevents tyre damage and the critical driving situations that can occur as a result of sudden loss of pressure in a tyre.

LED daytime driving light and turning light are also equipped in the standard scope of supply. All seats in the NEOPLAN Skyliner are fitted with two-point seatbelts: passengers seated in the more prominent locations are protected by means of three-point belts.

MAN believes in maximum safety on board and for this reason standard-supplies fire alarm systems in all MAN and NEOPLAN brand tour buses. The fire alarm system in the Jetliner rounds off the vehicle's comprehensive safe-ty package and as a standard-supplied feature also monitor the engine com-partment and additional heater. The additional monitoring of main switch panel, boot, and toilet is available as an option. The Jetliner can be addition-ally equipped with a fire extinguisher for the engine compartment and with optical smoke alarms in the toilet.

These safety details make the Jetliner one of the safest compact-sized tour buses in its category – an important argument for bus operators competing for passengers.

The NEOPLAN service offering ensures cost transparency and certainty

The “Jet among combination buses” is a bus for daily, evening and weekend use. Flexible leasing models by MAN Finance make it a calculable factor throughout the entire agreed term.

The majority of bus operators will additionally increase cost transparency and calculation certainty with a maintenance contract offered by NEOPLAN in four different scopes: From the Comfort package comprising works within the scope of periodic maintenance all the way to the Comfort Super comprehensive package additionally covering all statutory inspection dates and repairs as well as Mobile24 services.

Additional cost certainty is ensured by the warranty extension offerings which can upon request be markedly extended beyond the new-vehicle ex-works warranty. Depending on customer requirement, the purchase warranties for NEOPLAN busses will cover either the entire vehicle or the drive train or specific equipment only. The basic package comprises either a purchase warranty on the entire vehicle or the drive train. In the case of the entire vehicle, the complete coverage provided by the manufacturer's guarantee from NEOPLAN continues uninterrupted. The time frame covers either 24 months without mileage limitation or up to 48 months and a mileage of 600,000 kilometres.

Apart from entire-vehicle warranties, NEOPLAN also offers a warranty ex-tension on the drive train covering the same amount of time. This warranty covers engine, gear, rear-axle and cardan shaft components. The variable building blocks that bus operators can select to supplement the packages provide more flexibility, more certainty and greater cost transparency. These building blocks include e.g. floors, paintwork, coverings, and a variety of equipment.

The warranty extension and service contract extension offerings provide the bus operator with a number of benefits: It allows bus operators to keep an eye on costs and while their budget planning will not be upset by unexpected expenses for repairs. It goes without saying that any repairs that may be necessary will be carried out by NEOPLAN or MAN Service outlets and authorised partners using genuine original spare parts.